


These Hands Were Made To Hold You

by Two_Spirit



Series: Self-Inflicted: Leonard McCoy Drabbles [4]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Hurt Leonard "Bones" McCoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:07:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25623385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Two_Spirit/pseuds/Two_Spirit
Summary: Alternate Universe drabble. Bones-centric. Written in 2013.Based on a writing prompt: An Alternate Universe in which Bones suffered debilitating damage to his hands, resulting in Peripheral Neuropathy (does not have the ability to feel sensation in his hands).
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Leonard "Bones McCoy
Series: Self-Inflicted: Leonard McCoy Drabbles [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857331
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	These Hands Were Made To Hold You

**Prompt:** An Alternate Universe in which Bones suffered debilitating damage to his hands, resulting in Peripheral Neuropathy (does not have the ability to feel sensation in his hands).

Though the chime for the end of Beta Shift rang through the comm, Bones did not pause in his work. He stood within the circle of his digital console, surrounded by individual screens displaying the many view of his nanotech surgical bots. The tiny, remotely operated devices were currently stationed within an incision painstakingly made on the sedated Lieutenant Danvers, and through Leonard’s careful guidance, were cutting cystic tumorous tissue from the young woman’s right kidney.

The doctor’s gaze flicked rapidly from one view screen to another, ever in motion. He managed the host of nanobots with a level of proficiency that was enviable, speaking a rapid series of commands into the headset hooked over one ear. “Bot Four: Ionic laser #3, shift .56 degrees towards the patient’s pancreas… Bot One: Cauterizing wand to indicated points 3, 5, and 6….” 

Leonard sensed more than saw Jim enter Med Bay. It seemed anytime the captain was in his vicinity, the doctor somehow intuitively _knew._ Still speaking to his team of nanotech, Bones held up one gloved hand to ensure Kirk’s silence.

“Bot Two: toxicity results for the perimeter of the cystic tissue….” Listening for a moment, Leonard gestured at a screen and watches as a histogram unrolled over his surgical bot’s camera view. He frowned at the screen for a moment before exhaling in satisfaction, “….confirmed. No lingering necrotic tissue detected. Bots One through Four: Standard post operating check. Seal removed tissue within the synthetic webbing and extract.”

The doctor clumsily keyed in a line of coded commands on the glass keypad before him, and only then did he allow his eyes to stray to his friend. Leonard smirked, “…come to observe another successful surgery, Jim?”

Silent until that point, Kirk let his mouth relax into a broad grin, “Nah, Bones….I don’t have to watch to know you’re kicking ass. I just thought I’d come see if you’d eaten…” At that moment, McCoy’s stomach took the liberty of growling, and he flinched as Jim laughed. “I’ll take that as a _‘No’,_ then…. c’mon..” The captain gestured to his companion, “…let’s go see if there’s anything edible in the officer’s mess.”

Rolling his eyes, Leonard carefully slipped the headset off his ear, his fingers curving stiffly around the microphone extension as he set it into a mounted container. The CMO smoothed his gloved hands and stepped out of the digital console, “Alright, fine, I’m sure they’ve got—“

“ ** _Bones_**.” Jim cut him off, leveling an expectant look at the older man. His blue eyes flicked between McCoy’s face and his gloved hands. “…you can’t take them off for _eating_ at least?”

Leonard drew up short, the scrawl of his mouth deepening into a frown. He muttered, fingers curling into fists at his sides, “….y’know I don’t like it. People stare.”

“People _stare_ because you never take off your gloves….” Kirk replied, his tone perfectly reasonable. He reached forward and gently took Bones’s fisted palm, lifting it between them. The captain coaxed his companion’s fingers to relax, opening his hand and gently working the glove off, finger by finger. Silent and mulish, Leonard just watched.

The hand, once revealed, was a mottled patchwork of discolored skin and thick, ropey scars. Even after all this time, the raised knot-work of scar tissue still appeared freshly healed, gleaming white against the redness of Bones’s disfigured palm. The stub of his severed pinky twitched, though Jim knew the doctor couldn’t feel his touch.

“See?…” Kirk sighed, smiling up at Leonard’s resigned expression. “Isn’t that better? You gotta let your hands _breathe_ sometimes, Len.”

“….whatever.” Bones grumbled, his gaze angled elsewhere. The doctor both hated and loved how Jim insisted on treating his neuropathy like something normal and undeserving of special treatment. He didn’t seem to care that Leonard couldn’t perform surgery like most doctors, unable to rely on dexterity and sensation when operating. He never complained about how Bones couldn’t complete reports on a traditional PADD, or that any effort to write down instructions was illegible. Hell, Bones couldn’t even examine his patients without the use of the biobeds and tricorders, his hands clumsy and inept at determining the vitals of a patient. He sometimes wondered why he’d ever chosen to become a doctor…

But then there was Jim, who grinned at him and looked so happy with both of his hands wrapped around one of Leonard’s; who was alive and perfect and still wanted him. And Bones remembered.

Clearing his throat, the doctor held up his other, still gloved palm in silent request. Grinning, Jim obligingly stripped him of the accessory, so that both hands were free. He tossed the gloves onto the CMO’s workstation. “…ready to go?”

“yeah, yeah…” Flexing his fingers, Bones gestured to the door, “…lead on.”


End file.
